Aug 19 2014

Wedding speech: Putting writing 201 into practice

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_assignment/writing-201-wrapup/
Rewriting on Your Own: Putting Writing 201 into Practice

If it had not been for the practice that the Dailypost suggested the 4 weeks I would not have done a well prepared speech! Thanks to all for tips and suggestions.

“I would like to begin by thanking the master of ceremony for inviting me,Ineke as mother of the groom, to deliver my speech. It is wonderful to have you all gathered here as friends and family in honor of both the bride and groom. I know most of you have come from distant area to join us in celebrating our children’s wedding… I would like to express my/our appreciation. There are many good memories that came to mind when I thought about what I would say today.
Bertus is an honest, hard working and loving young gentleman. I think he will be not only a good husband to his lovely bride but also an excellent father to his children. I am a very proud mother today, I am sure Bertus that your father would also be very proud to see you all dressed up and happy with Stella at your side as your wife. The two of you compliment each other in many ways and are a perfect match. Your powers are combined in one strong team.
Stella you and your family are welcome in our small family. We are tied together as one family now.
I am very proud to tell you some snippets from Bertus as a young lad up to becoming the young gentleman he is today.
I still see in my minds eye Bertus’s father, a man of nearly 2 meter, weighing between 110-114 kg sitting outside in full summer sunshine without his shirt and only his shorts watching his hens eating. Next to him was this tiny blond toddler only wearing his t-shirt and socks, without his nappy,also watching the hens and trying to water them with the hose pipe. A picture always to remember.
I also remember that he loved to dress up as Father Christmas and hand out the presents. He would paste his face full of cotton wool and wear his red track suit.
In High school, he was a trumpeter in the Cadet orchestra and they came second in the international competition that year. He tried to play rugby but hated it because in the scrum the boys tried to pull down each others shorts!
Bertus also delivered newspapers using his well loved bicycle. After saving all his well earned money he bought his first motor bike.
In his first year at technicon I bought him a yellow mini. I’ll almember this tall thin body doubling up to fit into the mini. Later he bought his real black motorbike.
Just after finishing his studies and starting his second job the opportunity came for him to move to New Zealand.
Here I want to thank Stella’s father Coen for giving Bertus the opportunity to live with him for the first month. Thank you for being, not only a good friend to Bertus, but also for giving Bertus fatherly advice too. It is much appreciated. Bertus still looks up to you as a wonderful father, now he has a real father in you again.
Bertus and Stella, I wish you all the happiness in the world and long lives together.
I want to propose a toast on the happy couple

Jul 10 2014

Things that make up me…Thursday special

I did my piece of writing for

It’s write easy

last Friday about things that make up you/me

I feel I want to share this piece of writing and also an old clipping from 1973.

1.Things that make up me…

1972 – starting a new year, in an unknown town and a whole new way of living for me.

After coming back from an awesome 3 weeks of touring South America I had to leave my parents home and start a whole new life on my own.I had been living and teaching for four years from home near Pretoria.

I got a teaching job in Potgietersrus,starting January 1972. My first year there I had to stay in the hostel as part of my contract. Coping with teaching grade 2 in English(me as an Afrikaans speaking person) and looking after children in the hostel stretched my nerves to the full.

The hostel had two floors. The ground floor was the easy floor. Children from farmers who lived too far out of town were hosted there. They always went home during weekends.

The first floor had children from Johannesburg or Die Rand who were taken away from problem parents. They never went home during the term. They could only go home July holidays and then December. These poor children had many problems. They were from broken and poor homes.

Why I am writing about 1972 and my first year in Potgieterus has a twist!

On Facebook, I am taking part in, posting a photo a day. A topic is given for each day of the month. Monday the topic was trees. Someone posted a photo of a dead tree next to Moorddrift monument. The camel thorn tree burned down some years back. A young tree is already growing there, very slowly There is a historical background to these trees. There were two big thorn trees growing on the side of the Nyl River. It was a good spot to camp for the group of Voortrekkers-Pioneers. During the night/day a nearby tribe came and killed the whole group. There were 6 children in the group. These childrens heads were bashed against the two trees killing them. This is why the trees are historical importance.

May,1973 I took my std 1 class to this monument and gave them a lesson on the historical background on the moments there. A magazine, Die Landbouweekblad took a photo of us with the two big trees still growing at that time.

I told the person who posted the dead tree, about this picture. She asked me if I could show it to her. After some digging in my boxes which I haven’t unpacked yet, I found the clipping and I sent it to the lady who posted it on Facebook.

I am very proud of myself because I first had to scan the picture and upload it to my computer, then I had to upload it onto facebook.

Now I am going to paste it onto my blog too!

The one in the green dress is me!

Visit Paula’s blog for more Specials

http://bopaula.wordpress.com/2014/07/10/thursdays-special-curiosity/

Jun 13 2014

Writing 101: day eight : Death to adverbs

Thursday morning I went to our Mall

sat down and did a lot of writing

because day eight was:

Go to a local café, park, or public place and report on what you see. Get detailed: leave no nuance behind.

12 o’clock, lunch time for many. I am sitting on a wooden bench against a wall in our Mall in Upper Hutt.

On my left there is one of those glass boxes in which you put $2 and use an electric arm with claws to pick up one of the objects in the box. It is a red one and there are big toy bears, dogs and colorful birds to pick. To my right are 3 more of these show cases. On the side of the one nearest to me are the following words “Win every time”. In it are sweets and balls to win. It is a yellow one..In the middle is a pink colored one where you can play some games paying $2 for a game. They call this one”prize cascade”. The third one is blue and has some chocolates in it to pick with the electric arm.They call it “Kiwikrane”.On each one is the company name: Prize out.

Also on my right hand side is our Paper plus shop. The sign above the door is in blue with Paper Plus, Kiwi on green Bank on red and last Post shop on red.All the writing is in white on the different colored backgrounds. Before entering the door there are tables with novels for sale. $20 each. On the right hand side of the door is a display window with flags of different countries. Also some books and objects, telling about the Soccer World cup starting tomorrow.On the left hand side of the door is a sign :

Lotto… Play here.

Opposite me, is Farmers, a big chain shop. Big signs say red dot sale with also some 50% off the price items.The wall above the shops windows and doors are a light green. There are glass panels in the ceiling to let in some natural light.

Ladies are walking past me some with shopping bags, some without. Some are in a hurry some just sauntering around. Young mothers with push- prams. Mothers holding toddlers hands. One toddler plays with the lid of a pink rubbish bin. The mother takes her hand and walks away. The pink bin belongs to a small kiosk that sells ice cream. It is painted in pink and is called Wendy’s . Everybody is dressed warmly in jackets,coats, hats and warm woolies. A toddler wears a blue hat with small bear like ears, very cute! It is nice and warm in the Mall.

Also straight in front of me is an open coffee shop next to an escalator. There is also a ramp for people riding their mobility scooters. Also useful for trolleys to go down to the ground floor. Right in front of me is also an ATM with people using it to get hold of cash.Then to my left is the Ware House which I can’t see because the Wendy kiosk is in the way.

The floor has got white shiny tiles. A cleaner with a broom is keeping the floor clean.An elderly gentleman joined me on the bench. He is reading his phone and resting a while.

Thoughtful writers create meaning by choosing precise words to create vivid pictures in the reader’s mind. As you strive to create strong imagery

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_assignment/writing-101-day-eight/

Jun 5 2014

Writing 101, Day Three: Commit to a Writing Practice

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Writing 101, Day Three: Commit to a Writing Practiceby Krista

Write about the three most important songs in your life — what do they mean to you?

Today’s twist: You’ll commit to a writing practice. The frequency and the amount of time you choose to spend today — and moving forward — are up to you, but we recommend a minimum of fifteen uninterrupted minutes per day.

The basic unit of writing practice is the timed exercise.

— Natalie Goldberg

I have a dream Abba

This was the romantic stage of my life. I started corresponding with my first and only love. This song just made me dream away. I also had a friend whose husband thought it was just meaningless words they were using to make into a song. He could not think that we could love it that much. I think women are anyway more romantic than most men. I loved to listen to this song while driving 3 hours to be with my beloved for the weekend.

Amanda Don Williams

I hate Don Williams. I was sick in bed with flu in my flat. The flat on top of me used to have drinking sessions after the bars were closed. They loved to play the songs of Don Williams as loud as they could. I was so sick at that time I called the police to tell them to stop making that noise in the middle of the night, night after night. For many years when they played Don Williams in shops I got this feel of hate and frustration. When I hear Don Williams today I still get a tightening up of my stomach.

One day at a time Cristy Lane

This song has sentimental value to me. When my life started to fall to pieces I could listen to the words and go on “One day at a time”. This is really still one of my favorites when I am feeling depressed. Listening to the words and say or singing the gives me hope and strength again for another day.